Just A Touch Away
by iEvenstarEstel
Summary: A strange and terrible accident leaves the team with two mysteries to solve and the only one that can help is Connor, only his disappearance is one of the mysteries. Set in Series 3, post-ep 2.
1. Chapter 1

Just A Touch Away  
2010 Evenstar Estel

Chapter 1

The last thing Connor remembered was the brightness of the explosion and the sensation of heat spreading out from his solar plexus to the lengths of his limbs and the top of his head. Once when he'd been a kid he'd accidentally touched the metal prong of a plug as he put it in the wall and got the shock of his life. This had been ten thousand times more intense and more painful. But now as his eyes fluttered open that initial pain had receded and instead he just felt a combination of nausea and an overabundance of adrenaline coursing through his system. He lay there for several minutes on the ground breathing in and out deeply and trying to orient himself. His limbs felt impossibly heavy and it took a great deal of mental effort to connect his brain and the desire to push himself up to his arms. He was as shaky as a newborn foal and when he finally did sit himself up he had to spend several minutes recovering before he could open his eyes again and have clear look at his surroundings. He was still at the anomaly site, a construction zone on the outskirts of London. A condemned building from the 1950s was slated for demolition and had been the epicenter for a small herd of triceratops that had come through an anomaly. Between their panic and stomping about the already unstable old office building was about ready to collapse. Ushering the animals back through had not been the issue, but rather the lack of safety at sending in personnel to secure the site. Connor had volunteered to go in with Becker and a pair of soldiers to lock down the anomaly for the time being until a proper team to be put in place to babysit it until it closed on its own.

Connor couldn't recall there having been anything out of the ordinary, especially considering how outrageous their ordinary was. He was setting up the first field test for the locking mechanism when he'd thought he'd heard a strange humming sound from the anomaly. He ignored it and in hindsight that was clearly not the smartest thing to do. He knew better and was mentally kicking himself for it now. The power that the locking mechanism generated was considerable, strong enough to reverse the polarity of the anomaly itself. It was a complex device and Connor was certain that it would revolutionize how they handled anomalies. Professor Cutter was nearby, just outside the building conversing with some of the soldiers. Connor could just make out the lilt of his voice. Becker stood nearby, but still several meters away. The anomaly started to crackle along with the strange humming sound. Connor thought it best to get it locked down as soon as possible. He was ready and all he needed was to press the button. It was now or never, the device _had_ to work. He took in a breath, looked upwards in silent prayer and hit the red button. That's when the light exploded before his eyes. He felt himself knocked back and then it all went dark.

He struggled to his feet and looked around, wondering why he was alone. He saw the locking device and was bothered by the fact that it seemed to be inert. He turned to look at the anomaly and gasped, somehow it had doubled in size. It was absolutely massive, taking up almost the entire level. The ceiling to the floor above had been removed in anticipation of the demolition and the anomaly expanded up high in to it.

"Woah!" exclaimed Connor. A portion of debris fell from above and crashed the ground and the entire building shook. He thought it best to get out and discern why the anomaly wasn't locked down and why they'd left him alone and unconscious in such a dangerous place. He exited the building and was shocked by what he saw. The perimeter of the site was lined with soldiers as well as artillery vehicles. Connor scanned the area and finally located a face he recognized, two in fact. He jogged down from the building to where Cutter and Becker were standing with a few of the assistant technicians.

"I don't care that you can't find an explanation!" Cutter roared at the technicians. "Keep looking. I want answers!"

"Sir," said Becker, interrupting. "Miss Maitland's arrived."

"Dammit!" Cutter let loose a few more curse words under his breath. Cutter and Connor both turned to see Abby rushing head long towards the Professor.

"Hey, Abbs..." said Connor, but the words died away as she ran right passed him and carried on towards where Cutter was standing. Connor turned and followed after her.

"Tell me! Tell it's not true!" cried Abby, rushing headlong into Nick and taking hold of him by his arms in a white knuckled grip. The older man tried to speak but choked on the words and it was then that Abby realized the worst had in fact happened. "No! No... oh god no!"

"What? What happened? Abby?" shouted Connor as he came to within feet of them.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," said Cutter, his voice cracking with emotion. "I don't know how it happened."

"Where is he! I need to see him."

"See who?" asked Connor, still not understanding.

"Abby, there's nothing to see. He burnt up. The explosion... it took everything. I'm sorry, he's gone. Connor... Connor's dead," said Cutter, tears brimming in his eyes. Abby let out a wounded sound of anguish and her knees gave out. Cutter pulled her up into his arms and held her tight as she cried.

"Uh, no I'm not!" shouted Connor. "Guys, I'm right here! Abby? Abby..." He touched her shoulder and when his hand went right through her he knew. He finally realized Cutter's words were true. "Oh god... this _cannot_ be happening!"

"Connor!" Abby sobbed his name and the Professor held her tighter.

"Come on, let me drive you home. You don't have to deal with this," said Nick in a soothing voice. Abby withdrew from his embrace and shook her head.

"I want to know what happened!" Connor was on the verge or freaking out completely, but he had to keep it together so he could assembled the pieces of the puzzle of his apparent death.

"We're working on it. He was working on his new device, the locking mechanism for the anomalies when something went wrong. We don't know what it was yet. Becker was nearby, but he didn't see what Connor was doing, just this massive explosion of light, an energy surge." Abby was too overcome to speak any more and Cutter practically had to carry her back to the vehicles. Connor was tempted to stick around with the techs to try and learn about the true nature of his demise, but his heart pulled him towards Abby. Slipping into Abby's mini before them was a strange experience Cutter opened the passenger door for Abby and he moved past her as quick as he could. He couldn't exactly feel the solidity of the car, but it wasn't like going through flesh like he had before when he tried to touch Abby. It was like non organic material was a forcefield. He could feel the resistant energy of things, but it couldn't actually feel the shape or the texture. He tumbled into the back seat just as Abby sat herself down. She fumbled for her keys and passed them to the Cutter when he got behind the wheel. Connor was relieved that he moved _with_ the vehicle and wasn't left in the dust. There was silence for a long stretch of time before Abby whispered.

"I never..." she began quietly.

"Never what?" asked Nick, trying to reign in his own emotions.

"I never talked to him properly. I always kept these walls up. I never let him in... he never... he never knew..." She breathed in a shaky breath and began to cry again.

"He knew how much you cared about him. He's... he was a smart lad."

"No, he wasn't!"

"Gee, thanks Abbs," commented Connor, feeling his own emotions rise up at witnessing their grief over him. It was nice to know he'd be missed, but the whole situation was so completely surreal that he couldn't do much more than passively listen. Surely there was something he was meant to do. Or, he thought fearfully, this was it. Would he spend eternity as a wandering spirit, observing life, but no longer a part of it. He shuddered and sat back, feeling his own tears start to fall.

"I never... I wouldn't... I always kept him at arm's length... I was so afraid... "

"I'm sorry, dear, I truly am. Connor... Connor was..." said the Professor, but his words died away and he couldn't speak. The remainder of the journey back to the flat was made in silence. When they arrived, Connor narrowly avoided getting shut in the car and stumbled and fell out on to the pavement behind Abby. Nick escorted her to the door of the flat after she'd stood staring at it for a long stretch of time. He opened the lock and pushed at the door, but Abby didn't cross the threshold. "Shall I come in?"

Abby snapped out of her trance and shook her head, taking her keys from him. "No, no I can manage."

"Will you come to the ARC tomorrow? There's a lot..."

"I'll come. I'm not going to sit idle. I _need_ to know that happened... what killed Connor."

"Alright. Please call if you need me." She nodded and disappeared inside. Connor had gone in before her and waited to follow as she ascended the stairs. When she got to the top, Rex swooped down to greet her. She caught him up in her arms and smiled as she cuddled him, but as usual Rex was clamouring over her shoulder in anticipation of Connor being up next. Connor was there, but he remained unseen in his paranormal state.

"Oh Rex... he... Connor... your... your daddy's not coming home," Abby sobbed, she grew weak again and lowered herself to the floor. Rex chirped and scuttled around looking for Connor before returning to the weeping girl. She remained at the top of the stairs just crying for well over an hour with Rex by her side, not understanding but offering comfort. Connor sat away from her on the stairs leading up to his loft and watched, feeling like his guts were beings twisted into knots. Eventually Abby calmed down and picked herself up. She fed Rex his afternoon apple and greens before closing herself in the bathroom. Connor didn't follow. He might be a ghost, but he was still a gentleman. He heard her shower and could detect the now very familiar sound of her sobbing. When she emerged almost another hour later, surely having used the last drop of hot water, she was wrapped in only a towel. If the circumstances were different he'd surely be turned on, but all he wanted to do was hug her. He watched as she hesitated, as if thinking something over. To his surprise she turned in the opposite direction of her bedroom and went up the stairs to his. She stood there for a long time, just staring and trying not to burst into tears again. She approached his bed and picked up the tshirt he'd slept in the night before and pulled it over her head before discarding her towel. She crawled under his covers and hugged his pillow. Connor watched in morbid fascination as she snuggled down into his sheets and pillow and breathed in the scent that lingered on the pillow. "Connor..." She sniveled and said his name over and over in a whisper. He wanted desperately to tell her he was with her, but he words fell on deaf ears. He lay down beside her, looking into her eyes as the tears poured from them. She stared right through him. "Connor... if you're out there, if you can hear me... I love you. I loved you for so long, ever since you saved me, and I was so afraid to tell you... now it's too late and I'm sorry." She buried her face in his pillow and her body shook with the force of her crying.

"You _love _me? Abby! This is a terrible time to tell me you love me," Connor exclaimed in shock. "I can't believe my bloody luck! What on Earth were you afraid of? Abby, I've worshipped you since the first day we met! I love you! Argh!" He stared up at the ceiling and growled in frustration. "Is this seriously what my afterlife's going to be like? I can't even talk to her! What the hell's going on? Isn't there supposed to be a white light or something! Stop fuckin' about with me and tell me what I'm supposed to do!" He ranted and raved up at the ceiling for quite some time. When he finally ran out of words he just lay there for long stretch of time. He went back to watching Abby. She'd fallen into a fitful slumber and kept saying his name. Now that he knew how she felt about him, the urge to hold and comfort her was even greater. He reached out and stroked her hair. In truth he only mimicked the motion as every time he tried to touch her properly his hand passed through her. After a time she seemed to calm and feel into a deeper sleep. Connor on the other hand felt no pull towards sleep himself. Nor did he feel hungry, or any of his body's other usual sensations. He guessed it all came from being a ghost. He watched Abby for the next few hours and ignored all his fears and his anger. He concentrated on the beautiful woman sleeping in his bed, wearing his shirt and speaking his name. If nothing changed, if he stayed this way forever, he'd stay with her.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Having gone to bed in the early evening, Abby awoke a few minutes before 6am. It took her only a few seconds for the memories of yesterday to assail her. Connor observed her as she held back her fresh tears. She got up from the bed and rooted around in his drawers until she found what she was looking for, his favourite red scarf. She went through her perfunctory morning routine and Connor watched with sadness and concern as she burst into tears when she burnt her toast. She didn't speak a word the whole time, not even to say good morning to Rex as she fed him. She disappeared into her bedroom and emerged a few minutes later dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a white tshirt. She had his scarf around her neck and when she went to leave, she hesitated and then grabbed his gray leather jacket to wear. She hadn't put on any make-up, knowing she'd cry again before the day was over. She looked so beautiful to Connor, the emotion was overwhelming him, he just had to touch her. He reached out and lay his hand against her cheek and holding it there as it disappeared into her slightly. He concentrated and after a few moments she gasped and her own hand quickly went to her cheek, sinking into his. Connor was taken a back. He pulled his hand away and Abby's breath hitched.

"Conn?" she said in a meek voice.

"You felt that! Didn't you? Abby! I'm right here, love. I'm right here," he replied practically jumping for joy. He touched her shoulder, then her cheek again, but she didn't feel him. She shuddered and grabbed her car keys, rushing out of the flat so fast he had to practically dive down the stairs to escape out the door before she closed it. More acrobatics were in order to get in before her on the driver's side of the vehicle. She drove quickly to the ARC and fortunately they were travelling before rush hour was in full swing, because Abby was barely paying attention to the road and had a few close calls that had Connor on edge. The last thing he wanted was for her to end up like him. Connor was glued to her the entire time she made her way through ARC security and up towards the main hub. She cast a furtive glance over at the anomaly detector and took in a shaky breath. She ascended quickly up towards Cutter's office. She found him asleep on his couch still in the clothes he'd worn the night before. He looked about as good as Connor felt.

She nudged his foot and he awoke with a start. Once the fog cleared he sat up and sighed. "Mornin'," he grumbled. "What time is it?"

"Just a bit past seven. You were here all night?" asked Abby softly.

"Yeah, yeah. I was... I didn't want go home, so I kept trying to piece together the events from yesterday. Lester wants a full report for when he gets in at eight. I'll have to just wing it. Becker might have more to say, he was closest to Connor when the accident happened. They took photos of the scene yesterday afterwards. Lester will have them. Maybe... maybe we can find clues as to what happened. How are you holding up?"

"Terrible, if I'm honest. It doesn't feel real. I know he's gone, but it's like... like I can still feel him. This morning in the flat especially."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, it's just wishful thinking, I know. I thought I felt something touch my cheek. It was nothing, I know that logically. Just my mind playing tricks on me." Cutter rose and brought her into the circle of his arms.

"It's alright Abby. It'll take a long time to get past this."

"It's so different than when we lost Stephen... for me at least. Connor... I..."

"You loved him." Abby parted from him and gave him an astonished look.

"How did you?"

"It was clear as the light of day. To me at least. I could see you fighting against it, but every now and again you'd look at him and smile and it came from somewhere so deep within you. Only Connor could bring it out."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I think Connor was too infatuated with you to see the subtlety of it." Abby smiled and her bottom lip trembled.

"I'm... I'm gonna go to the lab and tend to the flowers. I'll meet you in Lester's office at eight." She made a quick exit, but Connor didn't follow, choosing to remain with his friend and mentor for a time.

"Thanks for that," said Connor to Nick. "I think you made her feel better." Connor observed as the Professor moved about his office, tidying and pacing and not really doing much of anything other than occupying the time until Lester arrived. When he suddenly let out a fit of anger and cleared his desktop of its contents and sent them crashing to the floor, Connor actually jumped back in surprise. Nick fell back on to the couch and buried his face in his hands.

"You stupid boy!" he grit out. "What then hell did you do!" Nick wiped the tears from his eyes and tried to calm himself down.

"I wish I knew. The locking device shouldn't have malfunctioned! I did everything right. I swear I did." Connor sighed and leaned against the empty desk. "Look, Professor. I'm really sorry I'm putting you all through this. Killing myself was the absolute last thing I wanted to do yesterday. And can I just say the afterlife really sucks? See, the thing of it is... fuck..." He paused, frustrated, searching for the right words. "Nick Cutter, you believed in me, you gave me a second chance. You respected me and I appreciate it more than I could ever say. You've been like a father and I haven't had one since I was eleven. Someone's got to tell me mum what's happened and I hope it'll be you instead of Lester. You can make her understand that I died doing something important, something I cared about and something that was to help people. If you could maybe check on her from time to time I'd really appreciate it. I was all she had and she'll be lonely. Yeah... um, that was it. Thanks. I'm gonna go now." With that he left Cutter's office and made his way to the lab. He found Abby sitting in front of some strange flower from the Jurassic. It looked like a cross between a cabbage and an orchid, very strange and very beautiful in its own way. There were tear tracks running down her face again.

"Oh Abby," sighed Connor, feeling a constriction in his chest from the emotion. "I wish I could help, sweetheart." He placed his hands upon her shoulders and held them there. She jolted and her hands flew to her shoulders.

"Connor?" she whispered. He took his hands away, his mind racing. "Is it you?"

"Abby, you _can_ feel me. Okay... this has to be good for something."

"I... I don't believe in ghosts, but I'm willing to go on faith. Conn, if it's you, touch my right hand." Connor reached out and lay his hand atop hers, letting sink into it. He poured all his emotion into the touch, just like he had moments ago and at the flat earlier. Abby smiled and shivered. "Connor!"

"I'm here Abbs, I really am." He took his hand away.

"Just so I know it's really you. If your answer is yes, touch my left hand. If it's no, touch my right."

"Geez, woman. I'm always jumping through hoops with you, aren't I?" He smiled with her.

"Does Rex like canned pears?" That was easy. He touched her right hand again and she smiled even broader. Rex hated them and spat them out the first time they were offered to him. "Okay, another. In a fight between Spiderman and Wolverine when it comes right down to it, you think Wolverine would win because if he ever got a proper hold of Spiderman, he could totally crush him, right?" Connor laughed and touched her left hand. She laughed and cried when she felt it. They continued on back and forth with a few more questions until she was absolutely certain it was him.

"No one's going to believe me. Not even Cutter, I don't think," said Abby. "You know what happened to you? That you... that you died?" He touched her left hand. "Were you with me last night? Did you hear me tell you that I... that I loved you?" He answered yes again. "Do you love me too?"

"Are you daft? Of course I love you Abby." He touched her left hand and held it there. It was then that Cutter showed up and Connor pulled away. He followed them to Lester's office. Their boss had a stern look on his face, more so than usual. Connor really didn't expect Lester to grieve much for him, but at least he seemed somewhat effected. He saw Sarah Page in the hallway, but didn't expect her to join them as she was too new to the team to warrant being in on the meeting. Becker was there however. He looked very grim, like he hadn't slept much the night before.

"Right," said Lester, sitting down at his desk and turning on the large monitor embedded into his office wall. A few moments later he brought up the photos from the demolition site. "I've already reviewed the images from the site and frankly it's pointless." He flipped through the photographs. "There's no indication from the surrounding area as to what manifested in Connor Temple's death. What we're left with is an invention that no one knows how to operate and the largest anomaly we've seen to date. Captain, you have an account of yesterday's events?" Becker stepped forward, his body rigid in military stance.

"Yes sir. Mr. Temple was occupied with assembling his anomaly locking device and I was keeping alert to anymore creatures possibly coming through the anomaly. Should that have occurred my first priority would have been to remove him from the threat of harm. There was nothing out of the ordinary for our usual anomaly procedure. I walked a circuit around Mr. Temple and when my back was turned from behind me came a massive surge of energy. It was white hot and as bright as the sun. I had to close my eyes. It lasted only a few seconds and when I turned around the anomaly had doubled in size and Mr. Temple was gone. That is all."

"Professor Cutter?" asked Lester in the other man's direction.

"I was outside," began Nick. "I saw the light, but only out of the corner of my eye. I ran towards it where I encountered the Captain as came was running from the other direction. I don't know what happened either. Connor was just _gone_. The energy burst was so powerful, we can only assumed it ate him up."

"Wait a minute," interrupted Abby. "If it _was_ an electrical burst, one strong enough to destroy a human body, how come the locking mechanism wasn't damaged? You can see for yourselves in the pictures!"

"Oooh, good question, sweetheart!" said Connor, proud of his girl for not losing her head.

"Certainly some of the simpler parts would've at least melted. Some of that's plastic and rubber. There should be scorching on the metal, right?" The men were silent, contemplating the question.

"We'll bring the locking mechanism here," said Lester. "And have the technicians take it apart for analysis." Connor panicked at the very idea and grabbed Abby's right hand, she got the message.

"NO!" she shouted, earning some very strange looks. "Please don't, not yet. I want to look at it first." She thought up a lie on the spot. "Connor was teaching me about it, we even worked on parts of it at home. I guarantee I know more about it than anyone else here. Please let me be the one. _Please._"

"Very well. It will have to be tomorrow. I've instructed the men to bolster the area surrounding the anomaly and the device. The building his highly unstable now and I'm getting flack from the union that they're not allowed to demolish it as scheduled. Once the area is a little more secure we can permit the rest of you to go back in. Furthermore, the anomaly is still wide open. With our luck a T-Rex will come through."

Abby spent the rest of her day sequestered in her lab with Connor. She talked to him, but after a while fell silent. He'd touch her, until he knew for certain she'd felt it, but she said nothing and merely hugged her arms around herself and closed her eyes. After a while he left her to watch what Sarah was doing, which was cleaning the artifact from the future. Cutter too remained apart, in his office working on his timemap model for the anomalies. Becker left to go to the site of the accident to survey the work. There was an eerie silence over the place that Connor didn't like. He wondered if everyone really was in mourning over him. He wondered if he'd underestimated his influence over the people that worked at the ARC. He understood Abby and Cutter being upset, they cared about him, even loved him and he felt the same way about them. He followed Abby as she left at the end of the day. She didn't check to see if he was with her. He wondered what was wrong.

When they arrived home she sat down at the kitchen table and just burst into tears. He'd thought she doing better after realizing that he was with her, but now it was obvious she wasn't. When he touched her shoulder she moved away, retreating to her own bedroom and closing the door behind her. He could have tested going through it, but it seemed she wanted to be alone. He listened at the door, hearing her crying before moving away. Eventually he made it upstairs to his own room and sat alone in miserable silence.

A few hours later he heard her emerge and first go to the bathroom before carefully venturing up to the loft. "Connor?" she called. "Connor are you here?" He rose from the chair at his desk and placed his hand over her left one until she knew he was there. "I'm sorry I ran off on you."

"S'alright, love," he said, still touching her.

"I"m scared, Connor. I feel like I'm losing my mind. How can you still be here? Are you a ghost? Are you even the Connor I lost? Or just an echo? I don't know what to do. I love you and I miss so much."

"I don't know anything Abby. I'm just as confused as you are. But I _am_ here, and I'll not leave you." He moved his hand slowly up her arm to lay it against her face and neck. She shivered and leaned against the wall. Her eyes fluttered closed. Her lips parted as he breathing increased. His other hand mirrored the first on her bare cheek. He splayed out his fingers over her shoulders and chest and held them there, watching her become overwhelmed with something he could only discern as pleasure. He didn't really care to question the logistics or physics of what was transpiring, he was too entranced at watching Abby sense and feel his touch. She fisted her hands in her tshirt and pulled it up and off her body, tossing it aside. Connor watched in fascination as she undid the clasp on her bra and pulled that off too. Taking the action as an invitation, his hands drifted lower and settled on her naked breasts. She gasped in an orgasmic rush and bit into her bottom lip.

"Yes Connor! Touch me." He felt the powerful emotion associated with arousal, but much to his chagrin and frustration, his body didn't react. He pushed the ire aside and concentrated on Abby. Her nipples had tightened into hard nubs and her hands were working at undoing the button and zip on her jeans. Soon enough she was completely naked and laying down on her back upon his bed. He climbed on with her, gliding his hands up the side of her ribs and to her breasts again. Her back arched into his touch and she whimpered. "Please Conn, more... touch... touch lower..." She opened her thighs to to him and he gulped. She was beautiful, _really_ beautiful.

He did as she asked and cupped her sex. She let out such a noise that Connor almost jumped out of his skin. From then on he was hypnotized as she moaned and thrashed in rapturous bliss. So long as he kept his hand there she was coming - over and over again. He pushed two fingers inside and her whole body seemed overwhelmed with the force of her orgasms. He watched her muscles clench through his phantom fingers and she screamed in ecstasy. She begged him to continue, even as her body broke out into a hot sweat and she panted for breath. All the while he cursed his state, wishing he could join her. Nonetheless watching her was no doubt one of the most incredible experiences he'd ever known. They continued until she was utterly spent. As she succumbed quickly to sleep, Connor lay himself down beside her and beheld her and the tiny smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. He truly loved her, more so in this moment than any other. He wondered if she'd still love him years from now if this was all they could have together? He wondered if he could allow them to do that to each other, let her have him as her ghostly lover, but never be able to speak or share their minds. He wondered if he could walk away and let her have new lovers who could give her everything he couldn't. The thoughts plagued him for the rest of the night.

_A/N - I couldn't pass up an opportunity for Connor/Abby Ghost!Sex, now could I?_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Connor had watched Abby all night long as she slept naked atop the covers. He memorized every single last inch of her body. He hungered to make love to her as man should and cursed the fact that he couldn't even get a hard on in his supernatural state. How unfair was that? He'd been dead for about forty eight hours and already he was sick of it. How was he supposed to deal with an eternity? He was starting to understand why people had faith in places like Heaven. Come to think of it, why hadn't he seen any other ghosts? Maybe this was his purgatory? As far as he knew his only sin was lust. Maybe a little envy. Connor gave his head a shake. For one thing he wasn't Catholic, so he didn't believe in Purgatory. He may have been raised in the Church of England, but he wasn't exactly a believer. Next to him Abby made noises as she awoke. She stretched and sighed opening her eyes. She'd grown cold in the night and quickly reached for Connor's discarded tshirt and slipped it on.

"Conn, are you here?" she asked. He covered her left hand with his and she smiled. She breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm just going to pop down to the loo. Meet me downstairs?" Abby hurried downstairs and he followed, waiting for her as she asked. When she emerged she was smiling. There was a sadness behind it, but the smile was real. He was pretty sure the plethora of orgasms last night that convinced her he was really with her had something to do with it. "Conn?"

"Right here, love," he said, sneaking his hand up the back of the tshirt she wore and holding it on her bum. As soon as it registered, she jumped and squeaked.

"Connor!" He chuckled and let her go. He sat on the kitchen counter and watched as she got down a bowl and a box of cereal. She absently turned on the vintage radio he'd got her last Christmas. It was kitschy and pink and as cute as the girl he'd got it for. There was a funny static sound that took Connor a few moments to realize wasn't coming from the radio. He did a double take, his mind suddenly full of thoughts that hadn't occurred to him before now. He still had his handheld anomaly detector in the pocket of his hoody and it was picking up the radio signal. He also came to the conclusion that he was a complete idiot. He had to get his head out of the clouds and start thinking like a proper scientist. He had a theory, a sudden and dangerous theory and he needed Abby's help to test it.

Abby was about to get tucked into her breakfast, but Connor hadn't the time or inclination to rest now that something so monumental was happening. He pointed his finger and put it to her nose. Abby dropped her spoon and it splashed the milk in the bowl on the tshirt. "Connor!" she said in irritation. He poked her left breast and she batted away at his invisible hand. "What do you think you're doing? Stop that!" He poked her foot next, then her knee, then her elbow. "Okay! Stop already. You want something?" He held her left hand. "You want me to do something? Go somewhere?" An answered yes again. "Okay, we're going to have to play hot and cold if we're going to get anywhere."

The whole thing was a fiasco of epic comedic proportions. It took twenty minutes of Abby moving around the flat before he finally got her standing in front of the radio. "The radio?" she asked. He grabbed her left hand.

"87.6FM, Abby. Please just know what to do!" he said excitedly. The anomaly detection device was always tuned into that frequency and if he was right, something awesome was about to happen. Slowly Abby tuned the radio and he held her left hand. He held the anomaly detector in his other hand as it crackled its white noise. "Come on, love, just a little more to the left!" As she approached the right station he started saying her name. "Abby! Abby... Abby... Abby..." She let out a genuine, honest to goodness scream when she heard her name spoken in Connor's voice come over the radio. "Abby! Don't panic. Can you hear me?"

"Connor?"

"Can you!"

"Yes! Oh god, Connor!" The poor girl started crying again. "I never... I never thought I'd hear your voice again! Connor, I love you!"

"I love you too, sweetheart. I need you to listen, alright?" She nodded her head. "Maybe you should sit down. You look like you're about to collapse as it is." She did as he asked and pulled a chair over to the radio.

"First off, you look really sexy in just my old tshirt."

"Connor!"

"Well, you do, especially because you're not wearing any knickers."

"Just for the record, that was you last night, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, yeah that was me." Abby blushed a delightful shade of pink.

"That's not what I went upstairs for you know? I just wanted to apologize and to tell you I loved you."

"What was it like? I didn't know a woman could come like that. It was like you couldn't stop."

"I couldn't! I... wow... I never have like that before. Connor it was beyond anything I could imagine. I just couldn't help myself. I _had_ to have you touching me. It was like... like a... I felt this vibration down to my cells and it just set everything on fire, everything felt so good. Better than good." She squirmed a little in her seat, remembering the night before. "It was constant, unending, super strong orgasms, Conn. What was it like for you?"

"Er... kinda one sided actually. I can't sleep, I'm not hungry... Er, nothing's working."

"Nothing? As in..."

"As in it was fantastic to watch, but that was it."

"Oh."

"Yeah. It sucks. But I have good news!"

"What can possibly be good about being dead?"

"Well, for starters, I'm not dead! Not even a little!"

"I don't understand."

"That's okay, I'm gonna explain. This would be so much easier if you were a Star Trek fan, then I could just..."

"Connor! Get to the point!"

"Right, sorry, love. I've been phased!"

"Come again?"

"I'll explain on the way. Get dressed first. Then upstairs in the bottom left drawer of my desk there's all sorts of electronics, there should be an old walkman with a radio. We'll need AA Batteries though, have you got any? Oh and grab the headphones to your iPod. Quickly now! The sooner we get a move on the soon I'll be back to normal!" Abby really didn't know what he was on about, but she did just as he asked and several minutes later she was listening to him via the radio in the old Walkman. She placed a phone call to Cutter telling him urgently to meet her at the anomaly site and that Connor was still alive.

This time Abby made sure to hold open the passenger side door for Connor to get inside the car before going around to get in herself. It seemed that most of Connor's theories were true in that whichever radio he and his anomaly detector were closest to, it could pick up his voice. As they drove he explained to her via the car radio what he thought had happened to him. The pieces started to fall into place as soon as he'd heard the radio in the kitchen. He'd been so caught up the silly notion that he'd died that he'd forgotten to use that massive intellect he professed to possess. He should have stopped, analyzed his situation and thought about things like a proper scientist. His locking device was simple in principle. It was designed to reverse the polarity of an anomaly. Anomalies gave off a variety of forms of energy, including electricity and magnetism. The combination of the two were integral to the locking device. He had noticed the anomaly behaving in a strange manner just before he engaged the device. Surges of electricity as well as magnetic force could produce an audible sound, which Connor had heard. He'd dismissed it at the time, caught up in his own enthusiasm. He _knew_ his device hadn't malfunctioned. It had done its job perfectly. Too perfectly. Connor's current theory was that the anomaly had been the problem. It had reversed its own magnetic field. Therefore when he'd activated the locking device instead of reversing the anomaly's polarity it had fueled it! The thing had doubled in size from being fed from the locking device. Furthermore, the feedback and residual energy had been looped into the next strongest source of energy - Connor himself. The human body produced an incredible amount of energy. Connor's body absorbed the polarizing effects of the locking device and the anomaly and effectively changed his own polarity. It had phased him out of his natural state into another, just like that episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Now they had to reverse it. With Connor instructing her, Abby would have to work to alter the locking device's polarity settings and hopefully shift Connor back to himself, and back into Abby's arms where he belonged. Abby was let past security as usual, bringing with her Connor's box of tools and gadgets that he kept in the boot of her car. She heard the old building creak and groan under the weight of itself as she made her way along the corridor to where the locking device and the anomaly were situated. There hadn't been any activity at the anomaly, but animal sounds had been audible over the course of the past twenty four hours. The ceiling and the support walls had been re-enforced overnight by an ARC crew with steel girders and buttresses, but the place still didn't feel stable to either her or Connor. Abby was more than a little nervous to be here, but she followed Connor's instructions. When they reached the anomaly detector she looked around and gasped when she saw the scope of the anomaly.

"Oh my god, it's huge!" she exclaimed.

"I could make a rude joke right now, but I'll refrain," chuckled Connor.

"You better. Okay, what do I do."

"First open the kit. You'll need a number four sized flathead screwdriver. There's a panel on the left side of the locking mechanism, take it off. This shouldn't be too hard, Abbs. Just a few adjustments and we're good to go." Abby got the panel off and set it aside, pocketing the screws. "Right, see that dial? The green one. Turn it all the way to the left until the green light above it turns red." Abby did exactly that, then followed his next instructions until everything on the machine that needed to be altered had been. Lastly he had her type in various codes on the keyboard and then the device was ready for activation. She raised her hand above the giant red button. "NO! ABBY!" She recoiled and pulled the headphones out of her ears.

"Ow! Connor!" She put them back in straight away.

"Sorry, love. You can't do that! You have to be at least as far away as Becker was. I don't want what happened to me to happen to you. Something could go wrong."

"What do you mean something could go wrong? Connor?"

"Love, you can throw a rock at it or something, aim to hit the button."

"Hit it with a rock? Seriously? Are you out of your mind? From how many feet away? What are the chances I'll actually hit it in just the right way to press the button?"

"Abby, there's no way you're pushing that button yourself."

"You can't exactly stop me, Conn."

"Please, I'm begging you. Just pick up a rock and walk at least fifty feet away."

"What if I hit it and smash things to bits? Then you'll be trapped."

"Abbs, you've got a great arm and great aim. Remember when you saved me from a Future Predator? I trust you completely." Abby set her jaw and grabbed a piece of concrete, jogging away from Connor and the locking device. Connor watched as she hesitated. He didn't want to distract her, so he kept silent. He wasn't sure he'd even still be in range for the walkman to pick him up. He closed his eyes and sent a prayer out that she wouldn't miss, and another that it would work.

Abby felt her whole body tense when she successfully hit the red button on the anomaly locking device. The explosion and heat of the light from the anomaly surging blinded her and she stumbled back, crying out and crouching down to protect herself. When it faded away, Abby was back on her feet and running toward the locking device. She sobbed with relief when she saw Connor's unconscious body on the ground. To her left was the anomaly, shrunk back down to size and firmly locked in a self contained ball of energy. Connor's invention had worked. She crashed to his side and gave him a shake.

"Connor! Conn, wake up!" she shouted. She even smacked his face a few times, but he was out cold. She checked his pulse and it was there, but a little erratic. Around her she felt a strange rumble pass through the building. "Oh no... " The rumble was followed by a loud thud from above. A few seconds later a massive chunk of concrete almost the size of car came crashing down, landing close enough to Abby and Connor to kick up dust and make her cough and choke. The building creaked and groaned loudly and Abby felt it palpable shift. She knew then she had only moments before the entire thing collapsed on her and Connor. She couldn't wake him and she definitely couldn't carry him. Instead, she locked her arms under his and around his chest and started to drag him out of the building. Larger chunks of debris started to fall and the re-enforcements the ARC personel had put in were failing, the building was just too heavy. They were lucky it had even held overnight. The dust was suffocating Abby as she laboured to drag Connor to safety. Debris consisting of concrete, wires, pipes and rebar was falling all around them. She couldn't see where she was going and the sounds from above and around her drowned out her calls for help.

tbc...


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Abby screamed when a massive chunk of falling concrete narrowly missed them by mere inches. Any second now the entire structure was going to come down on them. Her strength was waning and the grit in her eyes made it hard to keep them open. A moment later Connor was being pried from her arms and the voice of Nick Cutter was in her ear.

"Let me take him, you're almost out," he said as he lifted Connor into his arms. Abby followed him, gripping the back of the Professor's shirt. Once they were outside, they started running. As the building came down they shielded themselves and Connor behind an ARC vehicle. The sound of the building coming down was deafening and the ground shook beneath them. Abby wrapped Connor in her arms and hid his face against her chest while Nick's hands covered her head and they held Connor between them. The soldiers around the perimeter ducked for cover as the massive cloud of debris spread out from the point of impact. Cutter had entered the building just as it had started to come down and knowing Abby was in there, he didn't hesitate to go in search of her. Finding her dragging Connor's lifeless body erupted a thousand different questions inside his mind, but they'd keep until everyone was safe and sound.

It took a few minutes for the building to come down fully and even longer for the debris cloud to start to settle. Before it had, several ARC soldiers were zoning in on them and pulling them away to safer ground. Cutter insisted on still carrying Connor, with Abby hot on his heels. Abulances were called to the scene and in the middle of it Connor jolted up and took in a gulping breath of air.

"Oh god, everything hurts!" he complained as he collapsed back on the stretcher. Abby was there holding his hand, an oxygen mask over her face to match the one over his. Nick sat beside them, breathing in oxygen from his own mask. Their hair was covered in dust and particles, but their faces had been cleaned. He squeezed Abby's hands and looked up at her face. She was crying again. "Oi! None of that. All I've done for the past two days is watch you cry. Can't a bloke get a smile from his girl?" Abby did smile, right before she boffed him on the side of his head. "Ow."

"Serves you right. You have a lot to answer for. I had to drag your unconscious body out of a building as it was collapsing!" Connor did a double take and sat up again, looking to the right. Sure enough there was nothing but a big open space where a building used to be.

"Oh no! The locking mechanism!" She smacked his head again and beside them, Cutter laughed. "Quit that! I've just had my entire molecular structure obliterated and reformed. Twice! I think I deserve a little tender loving care."

"Tomorrow, Connor," said Cutter. "You and I are going and I are going to sit down and have a very long chat about the past two days."

"Okay... right..." stammered Connor. "You're probably wondering..."

"Tomorrow. Go home with Abby, get some rest if you can." The Professor got to his feet and took off his oxygen mask. He put his hand on Connor's shoulder and looked him square in the eye. "If you _ever_ scare me like that again I will kidnap all your vintage Star Wars action figures, the ones that are still in their original packaging, and I will give them to the first rottweiler I meet. Okay?" Connor nodded, getting a little emotional when Cutter leaned in and kissed his forehead before ruffling his hair, stirring up a cloud of dust. Cutter waved off the protesting EMTs who wanted him to go to the hospital to be checked out.

"Can we get out of here Abby? Please?" asked Connor, giving her his most liquid, sincere puppy dog eyes. She absolutely wanted to throttle him for using such dirty tactics, especially because she couldn't resist even when she knew it was a ploy.

"They want us to go to the hospital to get checked out. I inhaled a lot of dust." A suddenly flash of concern came over his face.

"Are you okay? Abby, I'm sorry! I didn't think. Why aren't we on our way? Oi! Ambulance... guy!"

"Connor, relax. I feel fine, the oxygen's great. They'll likely give me an x-ray and they'll send us home. How are you feeling?"

"HUNGRY! I haven't eaten in two days! And I'm full of adrenaline right now but I guarantee in an hour my lack of sleep will catch up with me." She smiled at stroked her fingers through his dusty hair.

"We'll get something fattening and cheesy on the way home, okay?" She sighed. "I've got to get my car sorted too. I wonder if they'd let me drive to the hospital?"

"Call Becker, he owes me for not protecting me..."

"Against your own mistake?" She laughed and Connor pouted. "Okay, I'll ask him for the favour. Connor?"

"Yes Abby?" She pulled down his oxygen mask and pushed up her own. She kissed him sweetly on the lips.

"No more scares please. I can't lose you again."

Connor and Abby were given the once over at the hospital but as soon as Abby was taken away to get her lungs x-rayed, Connor found a comfy corner and promptly fell asleep. It took her ages to find him again. Becker had brought her car to the hospital and after she was cleared, Abby drove them home as Connor dozed in the passenger seat. He didn't even wake as she stopped in at the pizza parlor two blocks from their house and picked up a large pepperoni. In fact he snored quite loudly for most of the journey. She briefly contemplated just leaving him in peace in the car, but they both needed showers and a meal. She nudged him and he mumbled something incoherent. She leaned in close and spoke into his ear.

"Connor? Wake up," she sing-songed.

"Gnask meghummm draf..." he replied, not waking in the least.

"Connor, if you don't get up now you'll miss soaping up my breasts for me in the shower." That did it. His eyes opened and a grin appeared on his face.

"I heard that. I'm holding you to it!"

"Of course, but only if I get to soap up part of you too."

"I know just the part..."

"Dirty."

"I'm dirty all over, love."

"Okay that's enough of that." Abby laughed and just as he tried to draw her in for a kiss she ducked away and got out of the car. She opened the back and got the pizza, which he only just noticed. It smelled divine. Once inside she tossed the pizza on the coffee table. Connor watched as she sashayed towards the bathroom, peeling off pieces of clothing as she went. When she was down to just her knickers and a tshirt she disappeared around the corner. Connor hurried after her, pulling off his hoody and tshirt as he went. He narrowly missed running into the door frame of the bathroom. Abby was about to reach for the taps to turn on the water when Connor took hold of her hips and pulled her back against him.

"Abby? Everything works again." Abby knew it was the truth, evidenced by the heavy bulge pressed against her bottom. His hands moved up to her waist and splayed out over her stomach and ribs, gripping tightly as he moved upwards. The sensations were vastly different than when she'd believed Connor had been a ghost. It was no less intense or arousing, but it felt more real, she felt the connection to him that had been missing before. There was no substitute for flesh and blood. His hands went under her bra and took hold of her breasts, squeezing them roughly. His mouth went to her neck, sucking on the pulse point and making her legs turn to jelly. He parted from her only long enough to divest her of the rest of her clothes. Abby turned around and was caught up in his arms and the most passionate, fiery kiss she'd ever experienced. She started sinking to the floor and Connor was going with her. She made quick work of his belt, then the button and zip on his jeans and then her hand was inside his boxers, gripping his length. The rolled together while Connor worked furiously to get his jeans and boxers off, all the while trying to keep his lips fused to hers. Abby finally hooked her leg around around Connor's waist and dug her heel into his side, using it as leverage to flip him over on to his back. He landed a bit hard against the tiled floor, but any pains were forgotten when Abby pulled off he rest of this clothes and climbed on top of him.

With a wicked smile on her face Abby slithered up the length of his body. Straddling his thighs, she took his erection in both her hands, stroking him up and down until he as positively aching with need and begging her to give him what he needed. Letting go of his shaft and placing her hands on his chest, Abby aligned her hips with his and slowly sunk herself down on his cock. She took the entirety of him inside her and groaned at being filled so completely. Sparks of pleasure radiated from her core and coursed through the rest of her body. Connor guided her forward until her breasts were within reaching distance of his mouth. Capturing a nipple in his mouth, he tugged at it, swirling his tongue around it before moving to the other one. His hands gripped her rear and encouraged her to start moving, pulling her down against him as he pitched his hips into her. Abby rocked with him, becoming increasingly vocal. Soon she was riding him, bouncing wildly. To Connor's mind she was looming over him like a goddess or valkyrie. He'd never seen anything more glorious.

After several minutes he wanted control back, Connor flipped them, much to Abby's surprise. He got a little rough, capturing her wrists and holding them above her head with one hand whilst steadying himself with other as he started to thrust vigorously into her. His mouth was on hers again, hungry and voracious, all tongue and teeth devouring her. Abby brought her leg up around his waist, opening herself up to his urgent thrusts. He changed tactics again and took hold of her hips as he brought himself up to his knees. Holding her flush to him he ground against her as she arched her back and moaned, cried and screamed in release. Connor felt her inner muscles clench hard around him, rippling and pulsing. He held off his own release, straining to keep it at bay while Abby's body tried to wring it from him. His hand moved to where they were joined and Connor pressed his thumb against her clit, rubbing in hard circles until Abby exploded again. This time he couldn't hold back and with a shudder and a groan he spilled himself inside her.

The collapsed in a sweaty mass on the floor, laughing and panting and kissing whatever parts of each other their lips could find. Connor lay down on the tiles next to Abby, licking the sweat from his upper lip. He reached blindly until he found her hand and held it in his own. He brought it to his mouth to kiss.

"Not disappointed were you?" he asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"No, of course not! Why would I be? Conn, that was amazing. A little crazy and I gotta say the bathroom floor isn't exactly the comfiest, but that was _good_,really good!" replied Abby, her body humming with lingering pleasure.

"Thanks. Nice to know. I knew I couldn't please you like I did when I was phased, so..."

"Oh shut it! Connor, I wouldn't trade a living, breathing, warm blooded, dorky, adorable, geeky you for anything. Anything. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Good. Well, we've done dirty sex, now what say we hop in the shower and have some of the clean variety?"

Some time later after they were both squeaky clean and had mastered the art of making love in the shower, Abby eased herself down into the tub of steaming hot water and lay back with her head on Connor's chest. The large claw footed tub gave them plenty of room. Abby rested her hands on Connor's knees as he drew them up on either side of her. He reached over to the pizza box that rested on the lid of the toilet and grabbed a slice, hanging it to Abby. He got one for himself and moaned after taking his first bit. It wasn't hot anymore but it was delicious.

"This. Is. Heaven." He said, wrapping his free arm around her waist.

"Which? The food? The hot bath? The sex?"

"All three. Mostly it's just having my beautiful girlfriend in m'arms. Finally." Abby smiled and sighed, tucking into her pizza.

"I like that, by the way. You calling me your girlfriend."

"I like it too. Abby... why did you say you were afraid to tell me how your felt about me? When you thought I was dead, you said that." She went a bit quiet and set the pizza aside. "Abby?"

"It's a long story. We can talk about later, I promise. Suffice to say, you're the best man I've ever know and I've waited a long time for you and it took me literally years to see it. You had to die before I opened my eyes." He tightened his grip around her middle and kissed her cheek. He handed her his slice of pizza and she accepted it, tearing off a piece to feed him before taking a bite herself.

"Were are we sleeping tonight?"

"I think I'd like one more night in your bed. I want to feel you all around me. I want to steal your pillow and hog all your covers and I want you to hold me while I sleep. But tomorrow, I think my room. Or should I say _our_ room? I think some judicious rearranging is in order. We can store some things upstairs and the rest downstairs. My bed _is_ comfier."

"I'd love that."

"Me too."

"I really love you Abby, with all my heart." Abby tossed the pizza slice in the general direction of the box and turned around in his arms so she could look in his eyes. She gazed at him for some time, watching the play of emotions across his face. Her fingertips touched his bottom lip and he kissed them.

"I love you too Connor."

The End


End file.
